Dream ShotThe Journey to a Wheelchair Basketball National Championship

In 2008, the men’s wheelchair basketball team at the University of Illinois set out to achieve their sport’s pinnacle: a college national championship. That lofty goal represented another stage of a journey begun in 1948 when Tim Nugent established them as the first collegiate wheelchair basketball team in the country. Dream Shot memorializes a legendary team alongside its contribution to the progress of disability rights.

The book — featuring over 100 color photographs, captions, archival photographs, an epilogue by the photographer and an introduction by Matthew E. Buchi — was released in Fall 2017 via the University of Illinois Press. It can be purchased on the UI Press website or on Amazon or at your local bookseller.

"Birnbaum's respectful and big-hearted honest photographs show us that on the court, and especially off of the court during their everyday lives, this is a team and a community of champions." —David Guttenfelder, National Geographic photographer

"This book is a fantastic testament to the power, struggle, and triumph of wheelchair basketball and the program, coaches, and players at the University of Illinois. Dr. Nugent’s dream is alive and well and is personified by the team of individuals captured in Dream Shot: The Journey to a Wheelchair Basketball National Championship." —Jim Scherr, Executive Director, National Wheelchair Basketball Association